topiary — 2014 — The 21st Century Matriarch

Day 3 in Newport was full of photography opportunities: sunrise from the Cliff Walk (40 steps), Blithewold Gardens, and Green Animals Topiary Garden.

Sunrise from the Cliff Walk

The sunrise was colorful - in the sky and the water. The cliff walk offers expansive views to the horizon and close views of waves crashing against the rocks below.

Enjoy the sequence below from just before sunrise to the brightness of early morning.

Blithewold Gardens

There is a mansion but it was not open on the day we were there. We were tired of house tours from the previous day in Newport anyway. I liked the stone steps and fountains near the house.

The garden include a sculpture exhibit. My favorite was feathers. Unfortunately, it was not a breezy day so the feathers were not moving enough for the chimes at their base to move.

And everywhere there were paths leading through lush vegetation.

The slide show below includes a photo toward the sky from inside the bamboo maze and a bee on a Franklin Tree blossom!

Green Animals Topiary Garden

There is a house in this garden that includes a display of antique toys. But the draw for this place is the topiary forms. I couldn’t resist including the pictures of a bee on a dahlia and monarch butterfly (one of the few I’ve seen this year) in the slideshow below - along with the topiary.

This is my third post about my walk around the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center week before last (the previous posts were about atrium plants and ice crystals). It was a cold but sunny day when I was there. Aside from the ice crystals - there were some other sights between the glass wall of the atrium and the Potomac River. The white and purple kale had grown lacy like the plants often do mid-way through the winter.